I second everything Jonah says in praise of Brian Lamb. FWIW, Christopher Hitchens (Vanity Fair, December 2006) credited me with throwing him off-stride.
The most unsettling [interview] technique is the simplest: Tim Russert’s matter-of-fact, research-backed question, asked in the mildest tone, or Brian Lamb’s complete composure, which I have only once seen disturbed, when I was on with fellow guest Richard Brookhiser. (“You had cancer?” “Yes.” “Where?” “In the testicles.” . . . “Nebraska — you’re on the line.”)